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Match Report

Carmarthen Quins 30 v Bridgend Ravens 19

Bridgend Ravens scored three tries
in a spirited second half comeback but it was too little too late as
Carmarthen Quins emerged with a winning bonus point at The Park.

Despite seeing an equal amount of
possession and territory in the first period, the Quins found
themselves 18-0 up at the half, profiting from a number of penalties
awarded by referee James Jones. The hosts added two more tries in the
second half and despite two excellent late tries from Tom Habberfield
and Luke Morgan, the Ravens were unable to take any points back to
Bridgend.

The win means Carmarthen stay in sixth
place in the Principality Premiership table and keeps them in sight
of the leaders. The Ravens remain ninth and top of the Ospreys-region
clubs but will need to get a result at The Arms Park next Saturday to
pull away from chasing Neath.

At the top of the table, Bedwas pulled
further ahead of second-placed Llandovery with a bonus point win
against struggling Aberavon, whilst the Drovers were held to 18-18
draw against Newport at Rodney Parade.

Both kickers struggled from the tee in
the opening minutes, with Lewis Williams pushing two similar kicks
wide of the posts and James Dixon also missing the target. Dixon was
soon handed more opportunities at goal however, and he slotted his
next two attempts with ease. The second of these followed a yellow
card for Ravens lock Alex Jones which incensed the travelling fans,
as a high tackle on skipper Jonny Vaughan seemed to have been missed
by the officials just moments earlier.

The Quins didn't take long to
capitalise on the numerical advantage, scrum half Connor Lloyd
crossing the line after darting through a hole in the Ravens defence.
Jones returned to the field after his ten minutes had elapsed but the
momentum was already with the home side and the deficit was soon
extended to 18 points. Dixon jinked his way through the defensive
line and showed good composure to offload the ball to Lee Williams
who in turn found fellow winger Jason Harries, the big number 11
finishing off the move in the corner.

Half-time: Carmarthen Quins 18 – 0
Bridgend Ravens

Carmarthen started
the second half much the same as they finished the first. This time
it was right-winger Williams who put his name on the scoresheet and
suddenly the points looked to be in the bag for the Quins. However,
the Ravens began to look more confident with ball in hand and
embarked on a period of heavy pressure close to the Quins' line.
Owain Lloyd looked to have scored but was adjudged to have crossed
the touchline before grounding the ball. However, minutes later he
got his reward after some strong play from the forwards.

The hopes of a
comeback were soon doused as Arthur Ellis became the second Ravens
player to receive a yellow card before Harries got his second score
of the afternoon to extend the lead to 30-7 with five minutes left.
But again Bridgend refused to give up and went hunting for bonus
points. A try from a quick tap penalty by the opportunistic
Habberfield gave the away fans something to cheer about but this was
soon followed by a third try.

Replacement
scrum half Chris Williams made a fantastic break and timed his pass
to Morgan to perfection, the winger showing the covering defenders a
clean pair of heels. Lewis Williams added the conversion to bring the
scores to a far more respectable 30-19. Unfortunately, the Ravens ran
out of time and were unable to add a fourth try which would have
awarded them two losing bonus points but the second-half resolve
shown is a big positive ahead of the trip to Cardiff on the 12th
January.